Monday’s Best Bets and Quick Picks: Horseshoe Indianapolis $9,776 Pick 5 carryover

Handicapper J. Keeler Johnson shares best bets and quick picks for Monday, May 5 at Horseshoe Indianapolis, including a single for the $9,776 Pick 5 carryover.

Today’s special offers from TwinSpires include:

• New Players $200 Sign-Up Bonus: Open your TwinSpires.com account using the offer code BET200 to start earning a $200 bonus.

Today’s TwinSpires tournaments include:

• $40 Parx Challenge
• $80 Horseshoe Indianapolis Feeder to 5/18 Churchill Downs SFBC Qualifier
• $160 Mountaineer Feeder to 5/26 Churchill Downs BCBC Qualifier

Best Bets and Quick Picks

Horseshoe Indianapolis: Race 1: $5,000 Claiming (one mile on dirt, 2:10 p.m. ET)

#2 Hemp Heaven (9-5) has run below form in his last two starts on synthetic, but he’s better on dirt, the surface over which he’s compiled an excellent 10-4-2-1 record.

At Belterra Park last summer, Hemp Heaven won a one-mile $20,000 allowance optional claimer on dirt, earning an 82 Brisnet Speed rating. Returning to dirt at Horseshoe Indianapolis stamps Hemp Heaven as the horse to beat, so let’s single him to start a Pick 3.

Selections

• #2 Hemp Heaven (9-5)
• #7 Mansfield Tiger (7-2)
• #5 Devils Gotta Go (6-1)

Wagers

• $15 Pick 3: 2 with 6 with 2

Horseshoe Indianapolis: Race 2: $50,000 Allowance Optional Claiming (six furlongs on dirt, 2:41 p.m. ET)

#3 The Kid Pataky (2-1) has won six of her 13 starts at Horseshoe Indianapolis, and she kicked off 2025 with a respectable third-place finish in a 5 1/2-furlong handicap. She’s a logical choice to win her second start of the season.

However, #6 Poetica (5-2) is an intriguing alternative. The former Southern California competitor recently ended a 16-month layoff with a pacesetting fourth-place finish in a six-furlong $50,000 allowance optional claimer at Colonial Downs. She was beaten only 2 1/4 lengths by Mendys Honey, who returned to win a stakes in her next start.

Let’s bet an exacta counting on Poetica to spring a mild upset over The Kid Pataky.

Selections

• #6 Poetica (5-2)
• #3 The Kid Pataky (2-1)
• #5 We’ll Do It Live (8-1)

Wagers

• $15 Exacta: 6 with 3

Horseshoe Indianapolis: Race 3: Allowance (one mile on dirt, 3:12 p.m. ET)

#2 Low Country Magic (8-5) has hit the board in four straight allowance and $50,000 starter allowance races at Fair Grounds, Churchill Downs, and Keeneland. Along the way, she’s posted sharp Brisnet Speed ratings of 76, 83, 89, and 81.

The competition should be a bit easier at Horseshoe Indianapolis, and Low Country Magic has the tactical speed to work out a nice trip, so we’ll single her to conclude our Pick 3 and play her over #1 Itzforever (5-2) and #3 Princess Kalamoh (15-1) in the exacta for good measure.

Selections

• #2 Low Country Magic (8-5)
• #3 Princess Kalamoh (15-1)
• #1 Itzforever (5-2)

Wagers

• $13 Exacta: 2 with 1
• $7 Exacta: 2 with 3
  Total: $20

Carryover Watch

Horseshoe Indianapolis: Race 4: $9,776 Pick 5 carryover (3:43 p.m. ET)

The new week is kicking off on a high note at Horseshoe Indianapolis with a non-jackpot $9,776 carryover up for grabs in the 50-cent Pick 5.

A challenging sequence is on the agenda. Every race in the Pick 5 contains at least nine entries before scratches, and even once you exclude eight also-eligible entrants from the count, there are 54 entries (averaging 10.8 per race) and 139,968 possible Pick 5 outcomes.

The good news is, #7 Nosleeptilbrooklyn (3-1) in Race 4 looks like a viable single to build Pick 5 tickets around.

Race 4 is a maiden special weight for three-year-old fillies racing one mile on turf, and the conditions should suit Nosleeptilbrooklyn perfectly. The daughter of Ghostzapper started her career with four starts against maiden special weight competition on dirt in Kentucky and Florida, and she performed respectably in a couple of sprints over sloppy tracks, even finishing second in one contest at Churchill Downs.

However, Nosleeptilbrooklyn arguably ran as well or better when switching to turf for a 1 1/16-mile maiden special weight at Gulfstream Park. After setting in midfield and advancing through the middle of the race, the Brian Lynch trainee launched a bid in the homestretch and stayed on to finish third in an 11-horse field. Her performance earned a 79 Brisnet Speed rating

The competition should be easier at Horseshoe Indianapolis (the par winning Brisnet Speed rating for Monday’s conditions is 71), so the stage is set for Nosleeptilbrooklyn to break her maiden. 

Cementing Nosleeptilbrooklyn as the filly to beat is the fact only two of her Sunday rivals have earned Brisnet Speed ratings higher than 79. #5 J N J Heartandsoul (6-1) posted an 80 in a Tapeta route, and #6 Theatrix (9-2) earned an 86 in a turf sprint. The fact Nosleeptilbrooklyn earned her 79 in a race similar to the one she’ll tackle at Horseshoe Indianapolis drives home her status as a trustworthy Pick 5 single.

Good luck!